France identified 400 more deaths than usual in the days of August when it experienced a heat wave, especially in its southern half, representing an increase of 5.4%, according to the French health services.
This excess mortality, which includes all causes, especially affected “those over 75 years of age”, according to a report prepared by the official public health agency, Santé Publique France (SPF).
The figures on excess mortality do not refer to the country as a whole, but only to 52 of the 101 departments of metropolitan France, which were affected by the heat wave that occurred between August 11 and 26.
These departments are home to 46.3% of the population of metropolitan France. Of this subset, 19 departments were on red alert due to heat, the highest alert level, located in four regions: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, New Aquitaine, Occitanie and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur.
“The impact on mortality varied from one department to another, depending in particular on the duration (number of days of the heat wave) and the intensity (temperature) of the event,” according to the SPF.
The agency plans to present later a full assessment of the health impact of different heat waves and, “more generally, of the exposure of the French population to extreme heat during the summer of 2023.”
Source: TSF
